Arab Student Union bring awareness with ‘Occupation 101’

Although the Israeli/ Palestinian conflict has been raging on for decades, the Arab Student Union (ASU) is still trying to raise awareness about the global problem. Students from the University of Michigan-Dearborn organization presented the documentary “Occupation 101” on Tuesday, November 13 to inform their peers on the issue.

Shalhout said the movie focuses on what Palestinians go through on a daily basis in their homeland. One focus included checkpoints and what Palestinians have to do in order to cross them.

Zainab Ezzeddine, director of communication relations, described the documentary as “emotional and heartwarming” adding that the film takes a look at the conflict from the Palestinian perspective opposed to the media’s.

After the movie, students, along with professors Dr. Skrbina and Dr. Stockton, discussed the film and what they found interesting.

Shalhout said everyone should be aware of what is going on in the Middle East because it is so often in the media. He discussed how he has been to Palestine six times adding that he still has family there.

“We (the Arab Student Union) are here to educate and promote what’s going on in the Middle East,” he said.

Ezzeddine said students should not only learn about the occupation in the Middle East, but also occupations all over the world. She added that people should to be aware of where their money is going when they donate to causes like these. This movie allowed for students to see where donations are going.

Ezzeddine discussed why this issue is important to her by describing her care for the Palestinian community. She described the Palestinian people and children as very admirable.

“There are no words to explain how I feel about the community,” she added.